SAVE OUR VOTE Initiative

Keep Democracy Alive

“Under God the People Rule” is our state motto. This initiative protects our right to vote.

South Dakota was the first state in the nation to have the right to referendum and initiative - since 1898. In states without these rights, even though a majority of citizens might object to a decision by government officials, they have no way to directly correct those decisions. All they can do is wait for the next election, then vote those officials out of office. In South Dakota, citizens are not rendered powerless in this way. South Dakotans can use an initiative or referendum process to directly propose new legislation or reject unwise decisions. However, the past few years have brought multiple attempts at both the county and the state level to take away these local rights.

Guarantee the Right to Vote

The Save Our Vote initiative protects the citizen right to refer a controversial conditional use permit to a vote. If the majority of voters do not want a medical waste dump, a giant feedlot or a juice bar with nude dancers, they can use the referendum process to reject it even if county government officials approve.
Denying the right of referendum is simply a way to deny the will of the people. County commissioners may hold a hearing on a controversial permit but ignore the wishes of local residents even when an overwhelming majority oppose a project. Indeed, commissions have done so in a number of recent cases.
If Save Our Vote passes, county commissions will not be allowed to pass zoning laws that take away the local right to vote. The state legislature would be served notice against passing state laws to abridge the local right.

Fair to Both Sides

As with any county legislative decision, citizens have a brief 20 days to collect the signatures of 5% of all the registered voters in a county. Collecting enough signatures triggers a local vote to determine the will of the majority on a permit.

Commissioners need not worry about being pestered with frivolous referendums. Collecting enough signatures within 20 days to put an issue to a local vote requires hard work. But it is fair to both sides. Developers, after all, need to know what to expect before breaking ground. The people need to retain their right to have a say on controversial permits that might destroy their property values and quality of life.

Protecting Commissioner Discretion & Autonomy, and County Treasury

A development such as a huge animal feeding operation requires both state and county permission. The Initiative makes it easier for commissioners to use their own best judgment whether to approve or disapprove a permit.

Currently, some county officials won't reject projects even if they are aware that conditions specified in the one-size-fits-all state conditional use permit do not adequately protect the local public interest. They fear developers will sue the county if commissioners withhold county permission for a development which satisfies state general permit conditions. This initiative protects counties and their tax dollars from such lawsuits.

The Initiative makes clear that for the local permit decision, government officials should take into account the degree of community support (or disapproval), the impact on public health, and the effect on people’s quality of life, natural resources and the local economy.

Statewide Initiative Insures Equal Rights in All Counties

Presently in all counties, legislative decisions of county commissioners can be referred to a vote of the people. However, in some counties, county commissioners can appoint a zoning board (sometimes consisting of themselves) and declare that decisions by this unelected body are not referable. The Initiative would rectify the current inconsistency in citizen rights from county to county. The initiative makes clear that the commissioners, accountable to the voters, are the county permitting authority.

(explanation by Bill DuBois & edited by Jeanne Koster)